'Super Smash Bros. 4' character news: unofficial results of Nintendo's special ballot for new character inclusion revealed by fans

The closing date for Nintendo's special ballot poll is right around the corner. This special promo allows players to nominate a video game character to be included into the "Super Smash Bros. 4" character roster. The results will be released after the special ballot's closing date on Oct. 3. 

But because some gamers already want to have an idea on which character is likely to get the most votes, they participated in an unofficial poll on a Reddit forum. In the unofficial tally, Shantae the Half-Genie Hero from WayForward Technologies' platform video game was hailed as the runaway winner with a total of 209 votes, more than 100 votes ahead of its nearest competitor.  

The young, quiet half-genie has been a fan favorite since the game's release in Game Boy Advance in 2002, which was re-launched with a console version through the Nintendo 3DS back in 2013. Shantae's popularity increased after the game developer announced plans to release the game's fourth installment for the current generation of gaming platforms. 

Shantae's runner-up is Shovel Knight from the indie side-scrolling platform game from Yacht Club Games. He managed to earn 105 votes. The veteran video game character Wolf "Star Fox" reached the third place with 103 votes, while Isaac from "The Binding of Isaac" got 102 votes. Rounding the top five is the veteran character Snake from "Metal Gear," which got 97 votes. 

The other in-demand characters that are included in the top 10 are Sora from "The Legend of Sora," Phoenix Wright from "Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3," Rare's Banjo-Kazooie, Ubisoft's Rayman, and PlatinumGames' Bayonetta. Inkling also used to be a part of the top 10, but it was later on deconfirmed. 

The list of characters is unofficial, and it is only compiled by "Super Smash Bros." fans on Reddit. The official announcement will be made by Nintendo after Oct. 3. Until then, gamers who want to see their favorite character on the next "Super Smash Bros." can cast their votes to make it happen. .

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